Flowmeter for gases



J. S. SENESKY FLOWMETER FOR GASES July 14, 1953 Filed May 19. 1949;?

,www H INVENTOR JOHN S. SENESKY BY ATTORNEYS Patented July 14, 17953 John S. Senesky, Somerville, N. J., assignor to Air Reduction Company, Incorporated, New York, N. Y., a corporation of New YorkV Application May 19, 1949, Serial No. 94,121

(Cl. 7S-209) 2 Claims.

This invention relates to flow meters an-d particularly to devices adapted to measure the rate of ow of gases supplied from a source thereof under pressure. Usually such gases areV delivered through a pressure-reducing valve or regulator in which the initial pressure of the gas is lowered to a pressure of predetermined value.

Flow meters of various types are known., One

type is illustrated in the Deming Patent No.

2,023,008 and embodies a tube and a iloating ball which is displaced in the tube, depending upon the rate of iiow of the gas. By suitable calibration, such a ldevice may be made to measure the rate of flow of a particular gas. The Bourdon flow meter operates on a different principle, and other devices are also available. All of these devices are subject to the disadvantage that they cannot be used satisfactorily for measuring interchangeably the rate of flow of gases of substantially different density such, for example, as helium and argon. If calibrated for one, a different calibration isv required for the other, and the possible rangey of calibration is such that even if two or more scales are provided, one or more of the scales will have a'range'so limited that it is not useful for practicalpurposes.

2 Fig. l is a View partially in'elevation andpartially in section illustrating a pressure-reducing valve with the flow meter attached thereto;

Fig. 2 is a section on the line 2-2 o Fig.' l; Fig. 3`is a section of the lower end of the iiow meter showing the adjustment thereof; and

Fig. 4 is a View similar to Fig. 3 showing a slightly modified form o'f the apparatus. y

In many operations, two or more gases may be used, and it is convenient to have a ow meter which can be employed with morethan one gas. Thus, in shielded arc welding it is necessary to regulate the rate of flow of the'shielding gas to afford the best shield for the arc. Argon, helium and other gases may be used in suchV operations, and it is desirable to avoid the necessity for changing the flow meter on the equipment whenever a change is made in the gas used.

In most other meters, the iiow measurements of a gas are accurate over only a portion ofthe full range of nows that may be encountered.

When the rate of flow of the gas is such asrto be at either end of the calibrated scale, iscrepancies enter into the readings. One common expedient to overcome this difiiculty is the use of different now meters for different ranges of ow rate, so that the accuracy of measurement of each flow meter in the range for which it is calibrated may be retained. This requires the maintenance of additional equipment.

It is the object of the invention to provide a flow meter which is capable of measuring the rates of ow of more than one gas and which will indicate a wide range of ow for each gas.

Another object of the invention is the provision of a flow meter which will measure the rate of gas ilow accurately over different flow ranges.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent as it is better understood by reference to the following specication and the accompanying drawings, in which While the invention is described more particularly with reference to a flow meter of the iioat-` ing ball type, it is equally applicable to other devices intended for the samepurpose, depending as it does, not upon the particular ow meter used, but upon the measurement of the rate of flow of a lpart only of the gas delivered, that is to say, with a gas of one density the device may be used without a bypass connectiomand with a gas of another density thebypass connection may be open so that only a portion of the gas passes through the flow meter.

Referring to the drawing, 5 indicates a regulator or pressure-reducing valve'of the ordinary type having an inlet 6 which is adapted to be connected to a cylinder or other container' for gas under substantial pressure. The details ofthe pressure-reducing valve are well known and require no specific description. A pressure indicator I indicates the initial pressure of the gas and, by manipulation of a handle 8, the valve may be adjusted yso that the gas issues through an outletl 9 at a predetermined lower pressure. regulator 5 is provided with a boss' i9 inwhich the outlet 9 is formed.

The boss IIJ is provided with an opening I Ito receive the shank I2 of the flow meter. The shank has an annular depression I3 registering with the outlet 9 so that the gasdeliveredfrom the regulator 5 may be delivered to a passage I4 extending to a recess I5 at the top of a shank.

Above the shank I2, two transparent tubes I6 and II of glass or other suitable material are arranged co-axially. The inner tube I6` has a chamber I8 of gradually increasing cross-sectional area from the bottom upwardly to the top. A ball I9 is disposed in this chamber and normally rests upon the opening to the recess I5. The tubes I6 and Il are surrounded by a casing 20 of metal or other suitable material which is secured to the shank I2 by screws or other fasten'- ing means 2I. A cap 22 is threadedly secured at the upper end of the casing 26 and holds the stopper 23 in close engagement with the upper ends of the tubes I 6 and Il. A gasket 24 surn rounds the upper edge of the outer tube Il to afford a gas-tight joint, and a pin 25, depending from the stopper 23, limits the upward movement of the ball I9. Passages 26 in the stopper23 afford communication between thech'amber I8 and the chamber 2l between the'tu'bes I6 and I'I. Gasket 28 is disposed between the lower ends of The the tubes I6 and I1 and the end of the shank I2, to afford gas-tight connections, and the chamber 21 communicates through openings-29 in the gasket 28 :with an annular recess 3U in the end of the' shank. From this recess, passages 3| (Fig. 2) converge in the shank I2 to a recess 32. 1

The lower end of the shank is counter-bored and threaded to form a chamber 33 (Fig. 3). A passage 34 connects the chamber 33 with the annular depression I3. A plug 35 is threadedly mounted in the chamber 33 and ymay be adjusted by means of a screw driver or other tool engaging v a slot 36 at the bottom of the plug. A passage indicated in Figs. 1 and 2, all of the gas from the outlet 9 passes through the recess I3 and the passage I4 to the chamber I8 of the flow meter and the ball I9 is liftedin accordance with the rate of ow. By suitable calibration, the rate of flow can thus be read directly. The gas continues through the passages 24 to the chamber 21 and thence through the passages 3| to the passage 31 in the plug 35. The gas may be delivered thence to the point where it is used. When the plug 35 is withdrawn to theY position indicated in Fig. 3, a portion of the gas from the outlet I9 and the annular recess I3 is diverted through the passage 34 and thus to the passage 31, while a portion only follows the path hereinbefore described through the flow meter. Thus, with a light gas such as helium, theplug 35 should be disposed in the position indicated in Figs, l and 2. All of the gas thus passing through the flow meter will lift the ball I9 and ailord Ya direct reading of the rate of flow by suitable calibration. When a heavier gas such as argon is to be used, it is necessary merely to move the plug 35 to the position indicated in Fig. 3. In this case, only a portion of the gas supplied passes through the now meter to lift the ball I9 and by suitable calibration the rate of flow can be immediately determined. The range of the scale will be ample in either case to measure the rates of flow of both gases with adequate accuracy. The modification of the apparatus for measuring different gases is accomplished by the application of a simple tool and the operation thereof, it being no longer necessary to employ separate now meters. Obviously such an apparatus must provide gastight connections to avoid leakage. Preferably, doughnut type annular packing 38 is provided in suitable recesses between the shankIZ and the boss I 0. Similarly, annular packing of the doughnut type 39 is provided in recesses in the plug 35 to prevent escape of gas around the periphery thereof. As shown in Fig. 4, the packing 39 may be disposed in recesses in the wall of the shank I2 surrounding the plug 35.

The apparatus as described aords a simple solution of the problem of measuring the rates of iiow of gases of substantially different density in a single apparatus so that the necessity for providing a plurality of flow meters and for constantly substituting them in the apparatus is avoided. Moreover, the range of flow rates as wellas the accuracy of measurement thereof is greatly improved. Various changes may be made in the form, ar- 'rangement and structure without departing from the invention or sacrificing the advantages thereof.

Iclaim:

1. In a flow meter of the variable orifice type capable of measuring the rate of flow of gases including vertical tubular` means and a cooperating `float, element located therein to provide a variable orifice, said ow-meterhaving inlet and outlet passages, an elongated member secured to the flow meter to support said ilow meter, said elongated member having a gas inlet passage and a gas outlet passage connected respectively to the inlet and outlet passages of said flow meter, a portion of the outlet passage in said elongated mem- Iber being threaded, said member further having a by-pass passage connecting the inlet and outlet passages therein, and a plug disposed in the outlet passage of the elongated member having an outer threaded portion whereby said plug may be threaded inwardly and outwardly in said passage to close or open said by-pass passage, said plug having an opening extending longitudinally therethrough and forming a part of the gas outlet passage in said elongated member.

2. In a flow meter of the variable orice type capable of measuring the rate of ow of gases including vertical tubular means and a cooperating float element located therein to provide a variable orice, said flow meter having inlet and outlet passages, an elongated member secured to the flow meter to support said flow meter, said elongated vmember having a gas inlet passage and a gas outlet passage connected respectively to the inlet and outlet passages of said flow meter, a portionof the outlet passage in said elongated member being threaded, said lmember further having a by-pass passage connecting the inlet and outlet passages therein, a plug disposed in the outlet passage of the elongated member having an outer threaded portion whereby said plug may be threaded inwardly and outwardly in said passage to close or open said by-pass passage, said plug having an openingextending longitudinally therethrough and forming a part of the gas outlet passage in said elongated member, and a sealing means, a portion of which surrounds the plug and engages the wall of the outlet passage of the elongated member upstream of the opening thereinto of the by-pass passage 'when the plug is in advanced position to prevent the passage of gas around the plug to that portion of the outlet passage immediately upstream of the plug when in said advanced position, another portion of the sealing means always surrounding the plug and engaging the wall of the outlet passage downstream of the opening-thereinto of the by-pass passage to prevent at all times the passage of gas from the by-pass passage around the plug to the mouth'ofthe outlet passage.

JOHN S. SENESKY.

References o'itea in the fue of this patent UNITED sTATEs PATENTS Number Name' Date 400,331 CrraeserV Mar. 26, 1839 1,608,059 Borde Nov. 23, 1926 1,985,397 Bassett` Dec. 25, '1934 2,023,008 Deming' Dec. 3, 1935 42,087,279 Deming July 20, 1937 2,196,285 Bachle Apr. 9, 1940 2,457,297 A11er Dec. 23, 1948 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 377,299 France July 6, 1907 435.297 Great Britain Sept. 18, 1935 

